I loved that extended metaphor about the cannibalistic lamas; it was a *perfect* way of showing how we privilege received knowledge--if it's widespread enough--over personal experience, and the dangers therein. I shared it with my daughters.

I don't know about stories I tell myself, but I'd say I've relied on stories as guides and supports in life, much the way people rely on actual living advisers. The fairy-tale notion that help will come to the protagonist in his time of need was a big comfort to me. I know that sounds like a bad thing to rely on! That it might encourage passive behavior... but in fact, it didn't encourage me to be passive, but rather to quell the voice of needless anxiety in my head. In terms of not being passive or overwhelmed, I tended to rely more on my observations (and news stories) about ordinary people figuring out ways out of their bad situations. "If they can do it, I can do it too," I'd tell myself. Not always true, but it got me to at least not be too paralyzed to *try*.

These days, the fantasy short stories I've been reading, and discussions and the atmosphere in the corners of cyberspace I visit, have made me much more aware of issues of gender and cultural assumptions about gender, and these days, I catch myself when I start assigning roles to characters according to timeworn patterns--I catch myself and then try to shake it up a little.

Thanks for such a thought-provoking post!